


Snapbacks and Smooches

by RhinosAreJustChubbyUnicorns



Category: The Fosters (TV 2013)
Genre: Jonnor - Freeform, M/M, Male Friendship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-12
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2018-09-16 22:54:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 17,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9293117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RhinosAreJustChubbyUnicorns/pseuds/RhinosAreJustChubbyUnicorns
Summary: "So you two are gay for each other?"After Connor Stevens jumped at his throat for inquiring about Jonnor's relationship status (season 3 premiere of the Fosters), Cade (a.k.a Young Dude, a.k.a Snapback Kid) is utterly depressed and full of regret for coming off as a dick. Little did we know about the Snapback Kid's real intentions and personality.Slightly AU as the characters are older (16).





	1. Chapter 1

“That was so dumb”

Cade repeatedly hit his forehead with his palm, making his snap-back hat fall off behind him on the bed. He sighed and stared at the wall of his room with an absent look on his face.

“Cade, you’re such an idiot” he thought, before suddenly standing, in a move of frustration.

He started pacing in his small room before stopping in front of the dressing mirror.

He was your regular Californian kid. Nothing seemingly special about him. White socks, dark long shorts, and a black t-shirt with graphics of a nice sunset printed on it. His dark hair was a mess without a hat, he thought. He didn’t like people seeing him without one, and he wore his hat at all times when not at home. It had become his signature look.

He had that goofy teenager looks, the looks of the guy you bring as a wing man to your double dates, the sort of kid you expect will crack a passable joke and be the occasional class clown. And he hated that image.

The real Cade was a bit shy, and he did get easily nervous when playing outside his assigned role.

Connor Stevens certainly did make him nervous. The events of the afternoon kept playing back in a loop in his head, and all he could do was cringe at those thoughts while pressing his cheeks between his hands and making faces in the mirror to try and get them out of his system.

“Damn”


	2. Chapter 2

The seaside boardwalk was busy with joggers, bikes and tourists, as is usual at sunset. But Cade didn’t mind at all. Literally. That was his favorite place to empty his head. He could just let the warm gentle breeze wash away any budding thought while riding his skateboard at a tranquil pace.

He took a turn at the familiar corner, the one with the ice cream shop. There in the shade between the buildings, out of the way of the crowd, was that blond haired kid doing skateboard tricks along the edge of the side walk. The sound of his board hitting and sliding against the concrete certainly did fill the space of the narrow street.

“Niiice, man” Cade said while approaching, congratulating the skateboarder for nailing that last move, with a big smile on his face.

“I did learn from the master”, the blond kid replied with a bit of friendly tease in his voice, as he grabbed his board and greeted Cade with a fist bump.

Cade then threw his own board on the pavement and proceeded to perform that same trick, to his friend's unfailing awe and admiration.

They both chuckled in satisfaction and sat down side by side on the sidewalk, looking towards the passing crowd on the nearby boardwalk, and the patrons lounging at their tables outside the ice cream shop.

Jace was Cade’s best friend since middle school. They didn’t need much talk to understand each other. And something appeared definitely off with Cade that afternoon.

“You alright man?" Jace asked. "What happened back at the beach? You basically just … vanished.”

Cade looked at his feet. Jace instantly knew he touched on something his friend didn’t want to talk about. Cade needed some time before opening up on some subjects and Jace was an expert at reading the clues and lighting up the mood.

“Come on, before they’re out of C and C” Jace blurted out while tapping on Cade’s shoulder to get him out of his thoughts.

Noticing the puzzled look on Cade’s face, Jace sighed.

“Cookies and Cream, man, come on!!”

Cade indeed needed the sugar rush, and also that hyperactive ball of energy he had for a best friend.


	3. Chapter 3

It was nighttime, and the two friends were back at Jace’s place playing video games on the big living room TV.

“So you’re still going to see your dad in LA?” Jace asked, keeping a concentrated look on the game action.

“Yep, can’t wait! You’re going anywhere this summer?”

“The usual. Two weeks in Lake Tahoe at my grand parents’”

Cade heard a text notification on his phone and read the message, a slightly annoyed look on his face.

“Hey, can I crash here tonight? My mom’s working late... again”

Jace took a deep breath and shouted “Moooom, Cade’s staying tonight!”

“Alright!” an amused woman replied from the next room.

* * *

 

“So what’s Stevens’ deal anyway?” Cade asked, half-whispering.

The boys were in Jace’s bedroom, the lights were off, and the two were chatting a bit before falling asleep. Cade was in Jace’s single bed, and Jace was sleeping on a mattress on the floor.

“What do you mean? You don’t KNOW?” Jace was trying to keep his voice down despite the surprise. After a moment, he sighs and turns in his sheets to face the bed Cade was on. Hearing no response from Cade, Jace continued “Oh my god, you’re serious!”

“Well?”. Cade was dead serious.

“Alright.” Jace took his best informative tone. “Stevens, and that kid Jude have been a couple for like a month. I knew because Jude’s in my English class and I overheard things. And I’ve seen them together. It was kind of obvious. Well anyways, cute couple.”

Cade chuckles. “Okay”

“Then this morning this girl spreads the news, and all the school knows within an hour.” Jace took a deep breath. “EXCEPT … the guys didn’t mean to come out AT ALL. The girl outed them.”

“Oh shit”

“Yeah that sucks balls”

“No… I mean. Yeah of course it sucks. The thing is I thought they were out already. And I kinda bumped into them at the party and I wanted to … like congratulate them. Stevens just snapped at me.”

Jace chuckles. “So that was you? You’re the one who took the heat?”.

“I guess”

“What’d you say?”

Cade sighed. “I don’t know. Dumb shit.” His voice broke, and he sniffled uncontrollably. The words he had said he remembered perfectly. That moment with Connor had been playing in his head in a loop at every occasion when he wasn’t distracted.

“Hey man, it’s alright” Jace immediately felt something was wrong with his friend. “Hey”. Jace reached out his hand and grabbed Cade’s shoulder. “You’ll get a chance to talk to him and set things right, okay?”

Cade did appreciate his friend could be both the funniest dude and the sweetest, most comforting person when he needed it.


	4. Chapter 4

Anchor Beach, 3 PM.  
It was the end of the second to last school day before the summer break. Cade and Jace were hanging out outside the building along with other kids waiting for their parents to pick them up. A few cars were already pulling over and the crowd of students was thinning.

The boys were casually joking around and making plans for the summer break when Jace motioned his head in a direction behind Cade causing him to turn around.

There was Connor Stevens, leaning against a tree, by himself, watching the cars passing by, seemingly expecting someone to pick him up. He had a frown on his face. Maybe the sun was too bright, maybe he was looking half-way between pissed and sad. Some of Connor’s expressions were definitely hard to read.

“That’s my ride” Jace said, as a car was pulling over near the boys, catching back Cade’s attention.

“Hey guys” said the cheerful blonde middle-aged woman in the driver’s seat, leaning over so as to see them.

“Hey Sylvia” Cade replied trying to sound normal, but he definitely had a concerned look on his face.

Jace opened the door, throwing his bag inside in front of the passenger seat.

“Cade, do you need a drop off?” Sylvia asked.

“Nah, thanks. I’ll walk”

“You sure?”

“Yeah”

Jace leaned over to Cade. “Go!” he said in a low voice, in a serious but friendly tone glancing over to Connor. “Go talk to him”.

Jace then threw himself nonchalantly in the passenger seat and slammed the door.

“I’ll text tonight bro.” he said as the car was driving away. “You got this” he mouthed silently, in an almost comical way, his head outside the window. Cade chuckled. He had the best friend in the whole world.

When the car was out of sight, Cade stood there, a worried look on his face. He knew what he had to do. It had been difficult enough gathering the courage to talk to Connor at the beach party, and he blew it. This time he had a presumably hostile Connor Stevens to confront. But Jace did give Cade that impulse he needed. Cade had to fix that unfortunate first impression he made on the boy with the crutches.

As Cade approched the tree, Connor turned to him and tensed up, grabbing his crutches and stood firmly on them. Cade slowed his pace and stopped a few feet from Connor.

“Hey man” Cade said, tentatively. It was hard to read Connor. He was silent, staring at Cade with a serious look. Connor had no doubt recognized him.

“Look I’m sorry for the other day at the party. I want to apologize.” Cade was breaking character. He was always trying to play it cool. And that strategy sure did fail big time last time he talk to Connor. This time he couldn’t risk creating any ambiguity.

“Listen I… I’d heard you and Jude were together, and I just wanted to wish you guys the best. I swear I had no idea you guys got outed by that girl. I wasn’t trying to give you shit about it, I swear. I got nervous and… Sorry”

“No” Connor broke his silence. He sighed and his body relaxed. “You couldn’t know.” He walked back toward the tree and got back to leaning against it, carefully resting the crutches beside him. Then he looked back at Cade.

“It wasn’t your fault. I’m so sorry for snapping at you. I had no idea someone outed us, and you basically broke the bad news to me.”

“So, you’re not mad at me?”

“Nope. Not at all. I’ve been trying to find you today so we could talk. Glad you found me.”

Cade felt a wave of relief washing over him. He sighed and smiled slightly. Connor smirked back at him.

After a few seconds Cade snapped back to reality and introduced himself,

“The name’s Cade. Big fan” he said, back to his playful self, shaking hands with Connor, who chuckled at the joke.

“Connor.”

A car pulled over nearby and Connor grabbed his crutches again. That was Connor’s dad coming to pick him up.

“I have to go. See you around?” Connor said, in a friendly tone.

“Alright, man. Take care”

That afternoon, Cade walked back home smiling at himself the whole way. When he closed the front door behind him, he had forgot how he got there. It was like he teleported from Anchor Beach and no time had passed since his talk with Connor. All he could feel was relief and hope.


	5. Chapter 5

Back in his room, Cade was still smiling to himself. He put on that catchy hip-hop song he loved on his phone’s speaker and started singing to it. He felt just great. The school year was coming to an end, he had made things right with Connor Stevens, and he had made plans with Jace for the summer break.

Text notification.

“Well???” That was Jace.

“Well what? _(smiley face)_ ”

“ _(unamused emoji face)_ ”

“JK. He was cool about the whole thing.”

“See! _(smirk face)_ ”

“Whatcha doin’?” Cade asked.

“Watching flat earth conspiracy videos _(laughing tears emoji)_ Really entertaining” Jace replied.

“JK. I’m bored AF. Come over? My mom’s on a girls’ night out.” he continued.

* * *

 

“Pizza’s on the way. Feel like watching the rest of Stranger Things?” Jace asked, while they were taking their seats on the couch.

“How did we even not finish that show yet?!”

“You passed out in the middle of episode 6, dude.”

Cade laughed. “I did?”

“Someone’s in a good mood” Jace joked, seeing Cade more smiley than usual.

“Yeah.” Cade replied sincerely. “Life’s good”. Cade did feel awesome. How could he feel any better? School was to end the next day, he was going to LA, he had talked to Connor, and he was hanging out with his awesome best friend.

A big empty pizza box was soon sitting on the TV room table. The boys were full and content. And the last episode of the show was running. Cade couldn’t shake the feeling, though. He was high on happiness, and loved every bit of the life he was living right now. He was glancing at his best friend next to him on the couch from time to time, and smiling. He was thinking how good Jace has been to him, how he’s been his best ally, how he’s always been there for him. Cade’s body was tingling.

When he couldn’t resist any longer, he leaned over to Jace, and kissed him on the cheek.

Jace looked panicked. He clumsily grabbed the nearby remote to pause the show, scooched a feet further and looked back at Cade, eyes wide opened, with a shocked expression on his face.

“What was THAT?”

Cade’s stomach sank, and his happy expression instantly vanished. What had he done? What was going on with him? Did he just go too far, and blew it with the person he cared about the most in the whole world?

“I… Just … Sorry” Cade was breathing heavily, his face was livid. He wished he could go back and erase the last 10 seconds of his life from the record.

“Just ...wanted to say thanks for today” he managed to articulate before gulping.

Jace’s expression slowly transformed from shocked to one of hilarity, before he burst into laughter. Jace was fucking with him the whole time.

“What?!” Cade asked. Half pissed, half relieved.

“You should have seen your face.” Jace said between laughs.

Cade chuckled, feeling relieved but still light headed from the adrenaline rush.

“Shall we continue the episode, or is there something you want to talk about?” Jace said, half teasingly.

Cade sighed. “Just unpause it.” he replied, faking exasperation but smiling widely, while leaning back at his spot on the couch.

Jace resumed the episode, and Cade breathing was progressively returning to normal. When out of nowhere, Cade felt a sudden movement on the couch and a quick kiss on his left cheek. He gasped at the surprise. But when he turned to Jace, the boy was back at his place, looking straight at the TV, trying to look casual, as if nothing had happened, almost. Jace had the cutest smirk on his face and his eyes were slightly red and twinkling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Artwork by macintoshapplepie](https://rhinos-are-just-chubby-unicorns.tumblr.com/post/156804543263/awesome-art-from-macintoshapplepie-for-chapter-5)


	6. Chapter 6

Back at home that night in his bed, Cade was staring at the ceiling. The room was almost pitch black. He could still make out the outlines of the walls, but he was seeing stars. That day had been by far the best in a long time. His feet felt like they weren’t touching the ground, figuratively speaking. And when he closed his eyes, he felt like he was hovering over his bed, light as a feather. That warm tingling hadn’t left him. It definitely was an unusual feeling for Cade, but it felt so good no part of his mind could object. The questions would come later, he heard, in the form of a very distant thought in the back of his mind. But right then, it was pure bliss.

 

* * *

 

“What was even yesterday?” Cade was lost in thoughts, while eating his bowl of cereal at the kitchen table the next morning.

 

What was even yesterday indeed. What was Jace’s deal? Why did Cade lean over to kiss him? Why did Jace kiss him back? The weirdest part is that it had all felt so right, so straightforward, so obvious, even though Cade couldn’t think of words to explain why.

 

They had been friends since the eight grade. And Cade never thought of Jace in any other way. They’d been each other’s sidekick, partners in crime, a few times getting detention together. Recently they’d become skateboard buddies.

 

Jace was a free mind. Never judgmental. Always looking like he’s about to crack a joke. It was like he didn’t have a single care in the world ... except in those moments when he suddenly switched to being the most caring and sweetest friend. Jace was basically unreadable for people who like their friends fitting in well-defined boxes, and maybe that was the reason he could count his own friends on one hand.

 

Cade had never really questioned his feelings and he was just going with the flow, probably Jace’s influence on him. Cade briefly had a girlfriend the past year and Jace and him would discuss girls at times. Cade didn’t know why he admired Connor Stevens, he just did, and Jace seemed to be finding that admiration rather amusing.

 

They kissed each other on the cheek. That was it. Why would reason even bother Cade that morning, on the very last day of school? Better leave it at that.

 

Cade’s high from last night had subsided somehow. But he was still feeling pumped and full of energy. The cereal, ordinarily quite bland, tasted better than ever. And the colors around him looked more vivid.

 

The skateboard ride to school on that sunny summer morning never felt better. Cade was free and full of excitement.


	7. Chapter 7

8 AM, Anchor Beach

 Cade was coasting down the last stretch of road leading to the school, just about the same time as Jace’s mother was dropping her son off. And the boys instantly spotted each other.

 Jace was rather tall, maybe an inch taller than Cade. He did experience quite a growth spurt a few months prior, because the two friends used to be about the same height at the beginning of the school year. Jace’s neck looked quite long, as did his arms and legs, almost making him look skinny. Jace was quite athletic, despite the appearance his ample clothes gave him. Jace’s hat of choice to cover his impressive blond mane was a baseball cap. His face was that of a boy with brown eyes, but his jawline had definitely been getting more prominent lately, making him look more and more like the young man he was becoming. He looked quite attractive if you asked anyone at Anchor Beach, but he had that touch of goofiness in his face features that made him all but boring to look at.

 Cade closed in on Jace.

 “Last day, man” Jace proclaimed.

 “Last day” Cade echoed as an Amen.

 

* * *

The morning went by fast. Most professors didn’t bother with proper teaching. Instead, they gave pointers on what to work on during the summer, although they knew very few students would open any kind of book for the next 10 weeks.

Like every Tuesday, Cade and Jace didn’t have their lunch period at the same time. Cade’s was at 12, and Jace’s was at 12:30.

Cade enjoyed sitting under the palm tree, and watch the waves when he had to eat alone. But that day, he spotted Connor sitting by himself at the wooden table in the shade.

“Hey”

“Hey” Connor replied.

“You expecting someone?”

“Nope, not today. Join in”

Cade took a seat on the bench in front of Connor.

“Last day huh?”

“I know right, at last” Connor glanced up at Cade and smiled, a bit reserved

The two were having their sandwiches.

“The guys say you got shot, is that true?” Cade asked, remembering the crazy rumor he heard.

“Yeah, I wish that wasn’t. We snuck into that girl’s house, and her dad thought we were burglars.”

“Wow man, that’s bad ass!” Cade did look truly impressed, much to Connor’s amusement.

“Hurts like a bitch tho.” Connor replied, making Cade smile and chuckle.

Both had finished their sandwiches with 15 minutes to spare. After a bit of mundane chatting they walked to the bench that was facing the beach and sat there. They looked at the waves in silence for a moment before Cade broke the silence.

“Hey can I ask you something? It’s kind of a personal question. You really don’t have to answer.” Cade said, a bit of nervousness in his voice.

Connor frowned, but he was intrigued.

“Okay”

Cade sighed, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

“Alright. How did … How did you know that you were… you know... attracted to guys?” Cade felt bad for asking that question. Maybe that was a mistake. “You really don’t have to ans-”

“Gay. I’m gay. And I don’t mind.” Connor interrupted with a confident tone in his voice.

“Yeah, sorry.” Cade chuckled nervously. “How did you know you were gay?” he finally managed to say.

“I just knew. I mean … it took some time before I put a word on the feeling. I always knew, as far as I remember. It was just buried deep for a while. Because my dad, the guys in school, they didn’t like that. What I felt I was. But then I figured, it’s part of me, it’s not going away. It’s about who I love. Accept it, or leave me be. You know?”

 Cade felt his throat tighten and his eyes watering a bit. He gulped. It took him a moment taking in what Connor had just shared before his nervousness finally subsided and he managed to look at the strong athletic guy again.

 “Man, you must have giant balls of steel. How do you even walk?” Cade joked.

 That made Connor laugh.

 “What about you?” Connor asked, back to his serious expression.

 “What?” Cade blurted out, instantly tensing up.

 “You know, you don’t have to own the word. Gay. Bi. Whatever. I do out of necessity. But they’re just labels. They’re not for everyone.”

 “I’m...I don-” Cade was jittery, he could barely form syllables.

 “Whatever you feel, own that feeling. It’s yours. Don’t lie to yourself. It eats you inside. And tell the person you care about when it feels right.”

 The bell rang and Connor grabbed his crutches and started walking back towards the building, leaving Cade stunned on the bench.


	8. Chapter 8

Cade’s forehead was drenched in sweat, and he wasn’t even moving. Except to grab his phone from time to time. No messages. No updates. It had just been three days since Jace left for Lake Tahoe where his grandparents had a small ranch, while a ferocious heat wave was raging in San Diego.

Cade missed Jace. And he was bored to tears. Should he text Jace again? He opened the camera and took a selfie. He was lying on his bed, snapback-less, shirtless, and sweating profusely. His hair was a mess. He tagged his pic “105° heat wave”, and he didn’t need to make a face or fake anything to show the state of overheating he was in.

“Awwww Cutie _(heart-eyes emoji)_ _(laughing tears emoji)_ ” Jace replied.

He knew Jace was joking, that response still made Cade smile from ear to ear.

After a few seconds he got another text.

“My balls hurt _(grimacing face emoji)_ ”, with a picture of Jace on a horse.

Cade laughed for the first time in 3 days.

“LMAO”

Cade tapped the picture to make it full-screen. Jace was riding a beige horse in front of a picturesque landscape with lush grass fields sloping down towards a lake, forests of pine trees, and mountains topped with eternal snow. The blond boy was wearing a cowboy hat, but he still had his city clothes, which gave him a somewhat comical appearance.

“We just hiked for like 3 hours on those horses. I just want to close my eyes and crash out and it’s not even dinner time yet.”

“Dude, I’d rather squish my balls on a horse than live one more day in this heat _(sweating emoji)_ ” Cade replied.

“Come over”

“I wish _(anguished face emoji)_ ”

“No I’m serious. My cousin is making the trip from San Diego on Saturday. And we’ll get you back to SD.”

“You sure? Isn’t it like a family vacation? I don’t want to bother you guys.”

“Bro, the place is huuuge. There’s like 3 empty rooms left in the house + a cabin. Also I already asked. Pleeaase?”

Cade smiled widely when he pictured the face Jace must have made when he wrote that.

“You bet I’m coming _(grinning face with smiling eyes emoji)_ Let me ask my mom.”

“Awesome!!”


	9. Chapter 9

Cade had barely slept the previous night. He was way too excited about Lake Tahoe and the idea of being reunited with his best friend. He figured he would sleep in the car anyway.

The heat wave had gotten better in the previous days in San Diego, but that morning still felt unseasonably warm for such an early hour. Cade was as ready as ever when he finally got the text from his driver.  
  
"Bye mom" Cade shouted in a hurry.  
  
He ran down stairs as fast as he could.  
  
Cade had managed to fit all his clothes for the week, plus the hiking boots Jace had asked him to bring, in a smallish dufflebag.  
  
Alex, the driver, looked like your typical college bro. He was pretty laid back. And Cade felt they would get along alright during the 9-hour trip they were about to take.  
  
The big dark SUV was comfy and very silent. And after a bit of random chat with Alex, Cade quickly dozed off. When he woke up, they were at a gas station halfway through the Death Valley and Alex was filling the gas tank.  
  
They ate snacks from the gas station store. And after a bit of stretching their legs and a bathroom break, they were back on the road.

With his stomach full, Cade quickly got back to napping. When he emerged, the landscape had changed from desolate to bushy and mountainous.  
  
Alex had been bobbing his head to a rap song on the car stereo. He had left the volume quite low so as not to wake up Cade.  
  
"Dude, I love this one" Cade said exitedly, grabbing the volume button, and blasting the song at a more appropriate level. That is, pretty freaking loud.  
  
The two dudes were soon dancing on their seats, and delivering the tongue-twisting lyrics of that Eminem song at an insane pace.  
  
Alex did need the alertness as the roads were rapidly getting more sinuous while they climbed through a lush and mountainous area.  
  
As the road exited a narrow valley, a breathtaking view was offered to Cade's eyes.

There was the lake, of an unreal blue, surrounded by mountains covered in forests, and the peaks in the distance topped with immaculate eternal snow. The air was the clearest he had ever seen, not a single cloud in the sky. You could see every detail for miles. And you could count each and every house of every village bordering the lake. Cade had never seen anything like that. He only had ever left southern California once for a trip to Miami as a kid. The only mountains he had ever seen were the arid rocks surrounding San Diego and LA.  
  
Cade lowered the passenger side window, he wanted to feel the air on his face and it felt and smelled nothing like San Diego. The fresh scent of the trees and the cool breeze were a godsend after almost 9 hours spent in the car's AC.  
  
As they were closing in on the lake Cade couldn't help but think that somewhere along those shores, was a ranch, and in that ranch was Jace waiting for him. Cade was restless with excitement.  
  
A salve of text notifications suddenly made Cade's phone beep repeatedly. He had not had any service for the past hour or so.

 

  
  
"How's the trip?"  
  
"Btw, my mom made cheesecake _(cake emoji)_ "  
  
"Nevermind I ate it all, sorry _(smiling and cold sweat emoji)_ "  
  
"How far?"  
  
"You here yet?"  
  
All Jace's.  
  


 

"Sorry, had no service. We're close _(closed-eyes smile emoji)_ "  
  
"You dog. You better have cake when I get there. I'm starving"  
  
Cade replied.

 

  
Not half an hour later, the dark SUV was pulling into the ranch's long driveway, bordered by pastures. There were a dozen horses grazing that late afternoon.  
  
As they were parking near the house, three dogs came out to bark at the car, followed by a tall blond dude in a light-colored flannel shirt, with rolled-up sleeves, wearing his signature baseball cap backwards.  
  
The SUV had barely come to a full stop when Cade detached his seatbelt and opened the door. Seeing Jace approaching, he tried to contain that beaming smile of his, with limited results.  
  
"Come here bro" Jace said, while giving Cade a warm, close hug.  
  
Cade had been craving that instant for the past 3 days. That hug was everything Cade needed.  
  
One's cheek was pressed against the other's neck. Jace's soft blond hair was brushing against Cade's ear. Jace smelled even better than the pine trees, even fresher than mountain air.  
  
"Welcome to Burton Creek Ranch" Jace announced loudly, in his best exaggerated dramatic voice, one arm around Cade's shoulders.


	10. Chapter 10

Jace was giving the tour to Cade. The property consisted of a somewhat large one-story house in the center, sided by stables and surrounded by pastures extending down to the shores of the lake in a gentle slope. Uphill beyond the pastures, at the edge of the pine forest, there was a small cabin. His grampa rented it to visitors, Jace explained, but at that time it was unoccupied.  
  
The main house smelled of wood and the interior felt like one big cozy cabin. The living and dining room was vast. On one side, a large U-shaped sofa, facing the fireplace. On the other, a long dining table, that could easily accommodate a dozen guests. The place felt warm and welcoming.  
  
"And that's my room." Jace said, proudly ending the tour.  
  
The bedroom was at least three times the size of the one Cade had back in San Diego, with two single-beds, one on each side, both fitted with warm covers and what looked like big comfy pillows. The nights could get chilly at this altitude, even in the middle of summer.  
  
But what caught Cade's attention was the two huge hiking rucksacks in the middle of the room, one admittedly slightly smaller than the other.  
  
"I got us all packed up for tomorrow, as you can see." Jace said.  
  
Cade turned to him with a look of incredulity and shock.  
  
"Man those are huuuge! Are we going on hiking like for a month?!"  
  
"Nah, just one night. They're far from full, and not even that heavy." Jace said, while he proceeded to demonstrate lifting the bigger bag with relative ease, and putting it on his back. The rucksack was almost half his height. "See?".  
  
Jace was cute trying to reassure Cade and making sure to having him on board for the trip. There was no need to convince Cade though, as he would have followed Jace anywhere.  


* * *

  
  
The atmosphere was quite lively and fun at the dinner table. Bob and Alice, Jace's grand-parents were lovely, cheerful folks, Jace's mother Sylvia was chill and smiley, and the three youths seated together, Alex, Jace and Cade were teasing each other and joking around.  
  
"So you guys be ready by 7 sharp tomorrow, alright? I'm waiting for nobody" Alex said, as they were finishing dessert.  
  
Alex was to drop off the boys on the other side of the lake for their hike, on his way to picking up his girlfriend at the airport in the next city.  
  
The plan was a two-day walk, mostly along the shores of the lake, and camping for a night.  


* * *

 

Cade felt refreshed and relaxed after that warm shower. His hair still slightly damp and untidy, he headed back to the bedroom, only to find Jace wasn't there.  
  
He went through the corridor, and the lights were off. The house was asleep, at least every one was back in their rooms. The only light was coming from the living room's fireplace, where he found Jace lounging in the sofa, his feet up on the coffee table. He was watching videos on his phone, chuckling, scoffing and laughing by himself. His face was flushed with hilarity.  
  
"Come see this" Jace motioned when he spotted Cade in the doorway.  
  
Cade leaned his arms on the backrest behind Jace so as to see the small screen. The video had a dog wearing a giant spider costume with hairy legs, running in the streets and scaring off people. The startled reactions of the passerby's made Jace burst in laughter every time.  
  
"Come" Jace said as he glanced at Cade, and scooched a bit to make room for his friend on the sofa.  
  
Watching the small screen required Cade to lean on Jace's side, his head almost touching Jace's shoulder. The taller blond warmth and his body shaking with laughter made Cade feel safe. He didn't know why or how. It just did.  
  
After they enjoyed a few more prank videos, Jace switched to more chill skating and surfing videos.  
  
Even though Cade had slept plenty during the earlier car ride, the thinner air was starting to take its toll on him and Cade eyes were closing. Pretty soon he dozed off, his head resting on Jace's shoulder.  
  
He woke up to Jace softly taping his cheek with the back of his hand, and gently shaking his shoulder.  
  
"Hey man, we should go to bed" Jace said in a soft low voice.  
  
Cade wished he could have spent the whole night where he was, leaning on Jace's shoulder.  
  
When the boys had barely passed the doorway of the bedroom, Jace quickly switched the main light off, plunging the room into darkness, before they had any time to reach their beds.  
  
"What the..." Cade exclaimed  
  
Cade was waving his arms in the dark, trying to orient himself, when a pillow suddenly smashed into his face, and he heard Jace giggling.  
  
"You're on!" Cade said.  
  
Cade charged head first in the dark, in the direction from where he heard the giggling, and sure enough he slammed into Jace, causing the taller boy to fall on the bed behind him, with Cade pinning him down.  
  
Cade grabbed the nearest pillow and pressed it on Jace's face, muffling the sounds of Jace laughing. Then he proceeded to pinch Jace's abs with his hand, which instantly made the blond tense and agitate his legs to try to break the hold.  
  
Jace finally managed to reverse the situation, having Cade pinned down, holding both his wrists and putting all his weight on Cade's stomach.  
  
"Alright..alright" Cade admitted with a giggle, unable to move. "You win"  
  
Both were panting. After a moment Jace finally released the hold and let his head crash on the mattress near Cade's, practically breathing in his neck.  
  
Jace then rolled to the side, and the two friends were now both laying down on their backs, next to each other, chuckling with grins on their faces.  
  
"Alright man. Good night" Jace said, laying his hand on Cade's shoulder, after their breathing had both returned to normal.  
  
"G'night"


	11. Camping night (part 1)

“Wow… man.. is this place even real?” Cade said, mind blown, as the trail lead them down to a small secluded creek on the shores of the lake. Jace replied with a smile.

They had been hiking for the most part of the day. Their path had lead them high up on a cliff trail with gorgeous scenic views, inland through the cool shade of a dense pine tree forest, then along the chilly waters of a small mountain stream down until they reached the shore.

“How far are we from our campsite?” Cade asked.

“You're looking at it”

Cade was in awe at the view of the creek.  The white sand beach, the crystal clear turquoise water, the grey round rocks made it look just like the shores of some tropical island, expect bordered with pines instead of palm trees.

“Oh man… sweet!” Cade was delighted.

“I know, right?” Jace replied, smiling at his friend. “So what do you say? We could go elsewhere.”

“Dude, it's perfect.”

Finally. They couldn't wait getting those huge rucksacks off their backs, and their sore feet out of those hiking boots.

The feeling of the warm sand between their toes made them forget all about setting camp. They had plenty of time for that. Right now, they just had to run around on the sand, wet their feet, and splash each other, like puppies after a long car trip.

* * *

 

“Wooooo! That water’s so much warmer than the river’s” Jace shouted, as he exited the water, pulling his soaked hair back, before grabbing a towel.

“It's awesome” Cade said, trailing his friend, still panting from the swim.

It was only mid-afternoon, and they had the beach to themselves, no tourists, not even a boat in sight.

“This is like the family's secret beach.” Jace explained. “No other way to come here, except by boat, but that would have been boring.”

“No pain, no gain” Cade remarked.

“We should definitely put some more sunscreen on, tho. So high up, we’d burn red in like 10 minutes”

Jace grabbed the tube from his bag.

“Here. Turn over.”

Cade tried not to think too much of it, but Jace was actually rubbing his back. He couldn't help but grin widely at the contact of Jace’s hand on his skin. Jace’s moves were firm but definitely not rushed, and Cade could feel Jace wasn't joking with the dangers of UVBs.

Cade chuckled uncontrollably when Jace started rubbing in circular motion at waist level.

“I can tell you're enjoying this” Jace joked. “Here, help me out”

Cade grabbed the tube from his friend. He was much more hesitant. But why? “It's just putting some sunscreen on your bro's back, dude” he thought as he pulled himself together.

Jace’s back felt tight and muscular, even it didn't look like he was working out much.

“Come on bro, more energy!” Jace said cheering on his friend.

Cade started using his whole palm, and applied the cream more thoroughly on Jace’s shoulders and neck.

“That’s it. Mmmh. Feels gooood. Yeah … that's the spot” Jace joked, contorting his body.

“Shut up” Cade chuckled.

* * *

The sun was about to disappear behind the mountains on the other side of the lake, and the sky was getting yellow, purple, and red.

Jace had started the campfire, and was attending it while Cade was going through his stuff to find a sweater as the temperature dropped.

“Hey can you bring me my bag?” Jace asked.

Jace plunged his hands deep in the giant rucksack and yanked off a big bag of marshmallows.

“Boom!”

“Oh man”

“Wait”

Jace searched some more, then pulled out a box of crackers and a chocolate tablet.

“Tadaa”, Jace exclaimed, a  goofy beaming smile across his face.

Cade’s face lightened up like a kid at Christmas.

“S’mores!!”

* * *

The brightest stars lit up the darkening sky. The fire was crackling, and bathing the two friend’s faces in soft orange light.

“Oh shhhit.” Jace said as he tried recovering a marshmallow that had just fallen into the blaze.

“That one’s a goner” Cade chuckled

“Yeah probably”

“Oh right wait.. you gonna love this” Jace continued as he remembered something and excitedly pulled out a jar of Nutella out of his bag. “Try this with your next one”.

The boys took a bite out of their hazelnut-spread s’mores.

“Hmmmm. Oh yeah. That’s the shit” Cade said, nodding.

“Oh god. It’s like Jesus jizzed in my mouth” Jace replied as he closed his eyes in appreciation.

Cade nearly choked with laughter.

* * *

The two boys had their stomachs’ full. They were lying on the sand, gazing at the dark, star-filled, moonless sky. Cade felt so good lying there, alone with Jace. Just the two of them, not a care in the world.

“So … what did you talk about with Stevens the other day?” Jace asked.

“Hmm?”

“I saw the two of you talking on the bench from the classroom. Is he okay?” Jace asked.

“Oh yeah, he’s fine. More than fine. He’s a really strong dude. No one would dare giving him shit.” Cade replied.

“Yeah, I can’t think of anyone crazy enough to mess with that guy.” Jace joked.

Cade chuckled. “I have”

“Oh that makes me think…” Jace said, as he motioned to pull out something from his pocket.

“What’s this?”

“Weed. Alex gave it to me. It’s actually legal here in Nevada.” Jace said as he held up the small joint above them.

“Dude!” Cade replied in amazement.

“Care to try?”

“Sure!”

They sat up, and Jace lit up the reefer, letting out a nicely smelling cloud of mango and citrus between them.

“Oh man, it’s been a while.” Jace said after he exhaled.

“Don’t worry, this strain’s actually quite mild.” he continued as he handed out the joint to Cade. “Alex isn’t the kind of dude to get high all the time. He just likes to chill out once in a while.”

Cade proceeded to take a puff, only to immediately cough. Jace laughed.

“Alright, alright … I got this.” Cade said.

He got it the second time, and exhaled a big cloud of smoke.

“Actually it doesn’t taste bad at all.” he continued before taking another puff. “I don’t feel anything tho”.

“A’ight, easy. It takes a while before you feel the effect.” Jace warned, taking back the spliff from Cade’s hand.

* * *

“Do you ever get the feeling that… like… the sky is in three dimensions, and not just flat. Like we’re really pinned by gravity on a giant ball floating in freaking space. And there’s really no up or down.” Cade said, marvelling at the skies.

The sky that night was so clear, it certainly felt there was nothing between them and the vastness of the universe. Cade was far from tripping balls. He felt just warm and relaxed, just more free to say anything that went through his head.

Jace chuckled.

“Yeah actually now that you say that… Oh man, it’s like if gravity stopped, we’d be like just flying up there.” Jace had taken way more puffs than Cade.

After a moment of silence, Jace rolled to his side toward Cade, laying his head on the dark-haired boy’s shoulder, and his arm on his friend’s chest.

Cade glanced at him. Jace’s eyes were closed, and he had the most peaceful expression on his face.

That was the cutest thing Cade had ever witnessed and all he could do was rest his cheek on Jace’s hair.

Jace’s body against his felt so warm. And everything in the universe felt so right.

Cade tenderly laid a kiss on his friend’s soft blond hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (to be continued...)


	12. Camping night (part 2)

“So, is there something you want to talk about?” Jace said in a slightly slurred and sleepy voice, his head still resting on Cade's shoulder.

Cade giggled, taking care not to shake too much.

“No man, I just feel great here with you”

“Me too” Jace replied, before he lifted his head and laid a kiss right next to Cade’s lips.

Cade felt a warm tingling wave taking over his whole body. He gasped and his breath got shorter. Right that moment, Cade just needed to hug Jace, and he rested his free hand on the blond boy’s ear and hair, softly brushing his friend’s hair with his thumb.

* * *

The night was getting chilly, and soon the boys headed to the tent and zipped themselves in their sleeping bags.

Cade missed the contact. The corner of his mouth still felt warm and slightly numb from the kiss. But soon he was shivering from the cold.

Cade felt a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey man you're alright? You've shivering.” Jace whispered

“Yeah, I'm freezing my ass.”

“Come” Jace offered in soft voice.

Cade didn't even feel the need to argue, and he slipped into Jace slightly larger sleeping bag.

At first, they just laid there, side by side on their backs. Then Jace started a cold feet battle. The rubbing their feet together did ease the shivering.

After they both were warm enough and the giggles had stopped, they both felt sleepy enough to close their eyes.

“Good night, man” Jace said.

“Good night bro” Cade replied as he rolled over to the side, facing away from Jace, in his favorite sleeping position.

After a while, Jace rolled right behind Cade for warmth, lodging his forehead against the back of Cade's neck and put his arm over Cade, his hand resting on the sleeping bag, right in front of the dark-haired boy's chest.

Cade couldn't move, he wouldn't. He could spend the rest of his life in that position. He couldn't sleep tho, afraid slumber would take away from him that very moment. He didn't want it to end, ever.

After a moment, Cade felt a warm touch on the back of his wrist. It was Jace's fingers, slowly making their way up on Cade's open palm. Jace's fingertips softly caressing his palm made Cade’s short-breathed. He had to close his fingers slowly to make sure he wasn't dreaming, and his friends’ hand really was in his. The game ended with Jace interlocking their fingers.

* * *

Cade woke up on his back, to a sleeping shirtless Jace resting his head on his chest. The sleeping bag was half-open on Jace’s side. The blond boy must have felt too warm when the first rays of the sun started hitting the tent.

Jace turning and mumbling he wanted to sleep more was the cutest thing. His blond mane was a mess.

“What time is it?” Jace finally asked as he rubbed his eyes.

“Nine” Cade replied after checking his phone.

Jace jumped out of the tent and stretched his whole body widely in the bright morning sun.

“Dude we should get going”


	13. Chapter 13

The boys were sitting exhausted on a wooden barrier on the side of the small deserted road, their huge hiking bags lying beside them.

The sun was still high and scorching on that mid afternoon.

“Man, I call dibs on the shower when we get back” Jace lamented, his shirt soaked in sweat.

“How long till your cousin picks us up?” Cade asked.

“He said 20 minutes, 20 minutes ago” Jace sighed.

The black SUV finally pulled over.

“Dudes, you look like you both lost 10 pounds” Alex said, as he helped the boys load the bags in the trunk.

“Man, we just spent 6 hours walking in the sun, half of that uphill. I need a shower, a foot massage, and a hot tub session.” Jace said.

“Wai-wai-wait, you guys have a hot tub?!” Cade asked excitedly as they boarded the SUV.

“Okay, do you guys mind if I crack a window?” Alex joked after he'd closed the driver's door.

* * *

“Oh by the way, Uncle Adam and the kids arrived at the ranch today, they had a change of plans apparently” Alex announced as they were a just mile from Burton Creek.

“You gotta be kidding? Weren't they supposed to come next week?” Jace replied

“They were. You guys will have to move out of the house, tho. Gramma had the cabin prepped for you.”

“Well, that’ll have to do, I guess” Jace replied in a falsely disappointed tone before he tapped on Cade’s arm and mouthed “HOT TUB” to him with a huge grin on his face.

* * *

“The only downside is we'll have to walk all the way to the house and back for dinner” Jace said, as he pushed the front door of the cabin, trailed by Cade.

“Woah this place is neat!” Cade said as he looked around.

The cabin was rather small and cozy, although well decorated. On the first floor, there was a four-seat sofa in front of a fireplace, a dining table, and an open kitchen. Upstairs, there was a room with a double and a single bed, and a bathroom.

“I hope they remembered turning the water heater on” Jace said as he opened the hot tap in the kitchen sink “Thank god!”

Jace continued his inspection by checking the fridge and the freezer.

“Oh Gramma… you know me so well.” he continued as he pulled out a tub of Cookies and Cream.

“Oh god, could this get anymore perfect?” Cade said.

“Let me show you.”

They went through a door on the side of the cabin, leading to a closed porch with a wooden deck, and there it was, the providential hot tub.

“Dude I can't wait to jump into that baby and never come out of it.” Cade said excitedly.

“I know right? We should wait till after dinner tho.”

“Right” Cade replied, trying not to eye the hot tub too much.

“Shower time!” Jace shouted as he ran upstairs.


	14. Chapter 14

“Aw man… finally. Oh God.” Cade said with a deep sigh of relief as he sat down into the warm bubbly waters of the tub.

“Dude… this is perfect” Jace said as he took his seat facing Cade.

“Oh wait… the massage jets” Jace continued before he turned them on.

They both exhaled deeply in satisfaction as they slowly slouched into the water neck deep.

They sat in silence for quite a while, as their backs were being relieved from every tension caused by the long hike.

Cade opened his eyes and gazed at Jace, who still had his eyes closed and a serene expression on his face. Cade couldn’t stop thinking about the past few days, how affectionate and caring Jace had been with him, the camping night, the s’mores, the weed talk, the hug under the stars, the kiss, the spooning, their fingers interlocking in the tent. 

And there he was, the face of an angel, the sweet, huggy, silly, loving angel he had for a best friend… and soon the urge was back. Cade couldn’t shake it. He needed to be near Jace, hug him, kiss him. Jace had been the one to take most initiatives so far, but now Cade needed to show Jace how much he liked him.

If Cade had the courage, he would probably be hugging Jace right there and then. Instead, Cade was nervous, plotting his moves. Should he just change seats to be closer to Jace? Alright, he just did, and it wasn’t so bad. Jace still had his eyes closed.  Cade didn't want to startle him. He would just scooch a bit towards his friend, get closer to his face, lean in... Cade gulped, the noise of the bubbles probably covered that, he thought. He was two inches from Jace’s cheek. Cade’s heartbeat was out of control. It was now or never, he thought. Just a quick smooch right there, next to Jace’s lips, that was the plan. Cade could hear his own chest pounding.

Now.

As Cade leaned in to close the gap, Jace turned his head slightly, making their lips contact.

A jolt of electricity crossed Cade's whole body, making him quiver. His lips felt burning hot. Cade leaned back in surprise before Jace opened his eyes.

This time, Cade didn't want to say sorry. Yes, the kiss had missed the intended target. But he meant it nonetheless, he meant it with all his being. He knew his whole world would change that night, for the better or the worse. He glanced at Jace’s full lips one more time before he laid another kiss right there, intently.

He had made his point.

Jace looked back at Cade dumbfounded, his lips parted. 

Suddenly, they hear a knock from the living room, then the front door opening.

“Guys, anyone there?” It was Alex.

“Yeah man, we… we’re over here.” Jace shouted, trying to sound as casual as he could, while Cade quickly got back in his seat facing Jace.

“Oh, having a good time I see” Alex said as he grinned at the boys from the doorway.

“Don't mind me, just grabbing some ice, and I'll be on my way” Alex continued, as he went back to the kitchen.

* * *

The rest of the evening went great. Jace didn't mention the incident, and the boys had quickly gone back to their normal selves.

After they had played video games for a hour or so, Jace decided it got chilly enough to light a fire, and kick back in the sofa with the ice cream tub while watching random online videos on the big screen TV.

They were goofing around and Cade had seized the whole tub for himself.

“Oh sorry, did you want some?” Cade teased.

“Come on man” Jace said trying to grab the tub from Cade’s hand and failing.

“Alright alright, hands behind your back and close your eyes” Cade said.

Jace closed his eyes, tilted his head back and made the silliest face with his tongue sticking out. Cade was giggling the whole time as he proceeded to spoon feed the semi melted cookies and cream to the blond dude.

Jace then managed to steal the tub from Cade, taking advantage of a moment of distraction.

“I'm so going to finish this alone” Jace joked.

“Dude, no way, I only got like two spoonfuls so far” 

“A’ight, open wide. Eyes closed.”

Jace held the spoon an inch over Cade's mouth dropping some melted ice cream on the side of the dark-haired dude’s mouth and chin.

“Oh man, gross!” Cade said chuckling, trying to keep his tongue sticking out, before Jace let go of the rest of the spoonful and Cade managed to grab most of it.

“Dude, you're a mess. Wai-wai-wait don't open your eyes just yet.” Jace was laughing so hard, Cade could tell he had something in mind.

Jace then proceeded to lick all around and over Cade's mouth like a silly dog, panting included. Cade squinted hard, giggling uncontrollably at the sensation.

“Ewww stop!” Cade managed to say between the giggles and the tongue strokes.

“What? I love it when my dog does that.” Jace said, before he stopped and just laid a proper wet smooch on Cade's lips.


	15. Chapter 15

“Truth or dare?” Jace asked, in a low voice, almost whispering.

“Truth” Cade answered.

The two boys were in the bedroom, lights off. Cade, as the guest, had the king size bed, and Jace was in the nearby single bed.

“Mmh… who is the most annoying person you know?” Jace asked.

“Oh that's an easy one. That dickhead Tyler from school.”

“The guy who used to bully you in 8th grade?”

“Yeah. He was expelled before you arrived at Anchor Beach.” Cade answered.

“I almost wished he was still there at the time. I would have wiped his ass off the face of Earth.” Jace said.

Cade chuckled. “Aw man, I would have loved to see that! Your turn. Truth or dare?” Cade asked.

“Truth” Jace answered.

“Alright… mmh.. do you have a crush on someone at school?” Cade asked.

“Oh, tough one. There's someone I like… kinda… a lot.”

Cade laughed. “Who is that?”

Jace snickered. “Dude, that’s another question. Wait for your turn! Truth or dare?”

“Truth” Cade answered.

“Okay, so… what is the best vacation you’ve ever been on?” Jace asked.

“This one, man. Definitely.” Cade answered.

“Definitely mine too.” Jace said.

“Truth or Dare?” Cade asked.

“Dare” Jace picked.

Cade chuckled. “Finally! Let the fun begin. Alright… mmmh… Text your crush and tell them how much you like them.”

“No way, man!”

“Come on!!”

“It’s super late. Plus that’d be so awkward.”

“That’s the game, dude. Hurry!”

“Okay, okay, alright”.  Jace answered before his face lit up with the glow of his phone.

Cade looked over at Jace typing his text on the other bed. He couldn't read the screen, just see Jace’s expression and he had the cutest shy grin, apparently struggling to find his words.

“Oh man. Do I have really have to?” Jace said.

“Definitely.”

“Here we go.” Jace said, defeated, before he sent the text, and his screen turned off.

Cade's phone buzzed from under the pillow. His heart skipped a beat before he grabbed the device and unlocked it.

[Jace] I like you… a lot. You're the person I care about the most in the whole world.

The room was dead silent. Cade’s eyes watered so much he couldn't make out the words on his screen anymore. His phone became a white blur. He sniffled uncontrollably.

Soon after, he could tell he received another text, but he had to blink multiple times to be able to read anything again.

[Jace] I told you that would be awkward.

Cade chuckled and grinned widely reading that.

[Jace] Alright. Truth or dare?

Cade took a moment before typing his reply.

[Cade] Dare.

[Jace] Join me. Please?


	16. Chapter 16

Cade awoke the next morning to the sight of Jace exiting the bathroom wearing only a white towel around his waist with his hair still damp.

Jace must have had noticed Cade’s eyes were open, because he immediately ran to the bed and jumped on it, grabbing Cade, hugging him, rolling over with him, and rubbing his wet hair all over the place.

“Dude!” Cade protested in his sleepy voice, trying to sound annoyed, but he was grinning widely.

After a moment Jace settled down on the bed, lying alongside his friend before he gave him a quick smooch on the cheek.

“You know what day it is today?” Jace asked.

“Wet dog day?”

Jace scoffed. “4th of July, man! We're going to South Lake this evening. They have bands playing on the beach, barbecues, and like the best fireworks show.”

Jace lying right next to him in a towel was a nearly irresistible sight to Cade. Jace’s excitement was contagious, and the idea of spending the 4th of July with his best friend had Cade wild. Cade rolled over to face the blond dude, laying a hand on his stomach before he kissed his lips.

They looked at each other in the eyes for a moment after they broke the kiss.

“You know, your hair doesn't look so bad without the hat after all.” Jace said.

“Shut up” Cade responded, dismissing the compliment.

“I'm serious. It’s so damn cute.” Jace said, as he tenderly arranged the soft dark strands around Cade’s forehead with his fingertips.

“Oh yeah? Yours is really a mess right now.” Cade said teasingly, using both his hands to mess up Jace's damp blond mane before Jace grabbed the dark-haired boy’s wrists to try and stop him.

“You're on, dude” Jace warned as they started wrestling and goofing around.

* * *

Alex, his girlfriend Talita, Jace and Cade had just arrived in South Lake Tahoe on that early evening. The sun had just disappeared behind the mountains and the beaches of the small city were getting quite crowded and lively already.

Concert stages had been installed on the sand along the beach, and a few bands were starting to play. Food trucks already had crowds forming as people were getting hungry. Every pole had an American flag, and a many people were wearing red white and blue on their person in various forms.

“My homie said his band was playing on the east side of the beach.” Alex said as the group was walking along the beach front.

“What kind of music do they play?” Cade asked

“Mostly rock, some reggae, ska, that kind of stuff.” Alex answered.

“Cool.” Cade said. “Any rap / hip hop group?”

“I seriously doubt it.” Jace said. “It's a family-oriented kinda place, sadly. Classic rock is all we’re getting tonight.”

“Damn.”

“We’ll play plenty of Eminem when we get back to make up for this, I promise.” Jace said to Cade.

* * *

Alex's friend’s band wasn't so bad after all, Cade thought. In fact, it attracted the biggest crowd of all the bands, with mostly high school and college age kids in the audience.

The group had grabbed their meals at a nearby barbecue stand, and they were chilling just outside the concert crowd, under the pine trees of the beach, as the sky was getting darker.

“What time is the fireworks show?” Cade asked.

“Around 10pm, I think.” Alex answered.

“Oh guys, I know just the perfect place to watch it. It's a 3-minute walk on a small hill. The view from there is awesome.” Jace said as he pointed in that direction.

* * *

The group arrived at the top of the small hill, in a clearing of the pine forest, just as the show was about to start. Jace was right, the view from there was astounding. You could see the whole lake. Its surface, very still, was like a giant mirror of the sky. And you could make out the outline of the mountains against the starry night.

Down below, the bands had stopped playing, and the beach was crowded with people looking out towards the lake, expecting the show to start.

On the hill with Alex, Talita, Jace and Cade, there were a few groups of people who got the same idea, but the place wasn't  nearly as crowded as the shores below.

As they were randomly chatting, waiting for the fireworks, Cade noticed a nearby group of half a dozen high school students, a hundred feet away. Probably locals, Cade thought. At least they didn't look like tourists. The kids were just chatting and otherwise acting like any group of kids their age, but Cade’s attention was caught by two of the guys who seemed very close to each other. When the group laughed at a joke, the boys' eyes were immediately drawn to each other. Clearly something was going on between those two, Cade thought.

“It begins!” Jace said as a loud whistling suddenly silenced the crowd.

Cade looked over to the lake. A trail of white light whizzed high through the night, before it exploded into a fountain and a loud bang echoed in the valley.

Cade and Jace were standing side by side, amazed at the lights sparkling in the sky. Cade had seen fireworks before, but never in such a beautiful setting.

Cade looked over at Jace beside him. The blond boy’s face was illuminated with the colors of the show when he glanced back at Cade and smiled.

Jace was wearing a white hoodie and a dark baseball hat. Cade had felt he didn’t need anything but a black tee-shirt and his snap-back when he left the car, as it was almost 80°F, but now the air was getting much cooler.

Their arms were touching and all Cade could think about was grabbing Jace fingers, and holding his hand. But Alex and his girlfriend were nearby. Talita was laying her head on her boyfriend's shoulder. If only this world was different and people didn’t care, Cade thought. He wished he could do the same.

Cade looked over at the nearby group of teens again, and he witnessed the struggle of the two boys. Their hands were almost into each other’s, and their fingers almost touching.

The last thing Cade wanted was to make Jace uncomfortable in front of his cousin. But one more look at Jace, his smile looking at the sky, the reflection of the lights in his eyes, ... and Cade felt that tingling rush again, his chest getting warm. Cade’s fingers were brushing against Jace’s palm.

Suddenly the fireworks show paused. In the relative silence, you could hear the murmurs of the crowd. Was it already over?

Twenty seconds passed, before the loud bangs resumed at an insane pace. The sky lit up again with the grand finale as the national anthem started playing in the distance.

The amount of fireworks made the landscape almost look like daytime.

Cade grabbed Jace’s hand and Jace held Cade’s.

The brown hair boy's heart was beating almost as fast as the fireworks were exploding in the sky.

When Cade glanced back at the group of teens beside them, he met the eyes of one of the boys. He was smiling and the two friends were holding hands too.

Cade glanced over at Alex. The college dude had his arm over his girlfriend’s shoulder when he looked back at Cade.

"Shit, has he noticed? " Cade thought.

For a split second, Cade considered releasing Jace's hand, but Jace was holding firmly.

Alex noticed, that was for sure, Cade thought, his mind on the verge of panic, before Alex grinned warmly and gave a thumbs up.

Cade chuckled. He never felt so relieved. He liked Jace, and Jace liked him, and they were holding hands in public.

The fountains of lights suddenly stopped as the anthem was coming to an end. Three blinding flashes of red, white and blue, high up in the sky, and three deafening bangs ended the show. The whole city cheered loudly for a whole minute, as Jace wrapped his arms around Cade and Cade laid his head on Jace’s shoulder.

Cade felt good with Jace and nothing else mattered.


	17. Chapter 17

They were back on the road. Headed home to San Diego. Sylvia was at the wheel, and the two boys in the backseat.

Jace had fallen asleep almost instantly after they left the ranch, his head against the window, mouth open.

Cade’s mind was still shaken by everything that happened the past few days. All went by so fast, everything was so intense. For the first time in a week, he was alone with his thoughts.

They had just exited the mountains surrounding the lake and were cruising along them in an vast adjacent valley. Cade couldn’t help but smile slightly, his eyes wet, gazing at the long chain of mountains topped with eternal snow.

Behind the peaks in the distance was the place of the best time of his life. Beside him was the boy he loved. But Cade couldn’t help thinking about the return to San Diego, the summer ending, and what their relationship would become. Would it survive the return to normal life, to school? How would he fare being away from Jace for anymore than 15 minutes? It was inconceivable.

Cade glanced back at his sleeping friend. His bangs of blond hair glowing in the morning sun, his goofy but adorable face… Cade wished he could just tenderly brush Jace’s face with the back of his hand, hug his arm, and lay his head on his friend’s shoulder.

Cade smirked looking at his friend’s peaceful sleep, before his own eyes slowly closed and he dozed off.

 

* * *

Cade awoke with Jace’s head on his shoulder, smiling in his sleep. Cade straightened up, getting a bit nervous that Sylvia might have noticed as he glanced up at the rear view mirror.

“It’s a great thing you guys have. Reminds me of me at your age. The magic of it.” Sylvia said casually, breaking the silence.

Cade tensed up. “We.. I-”

“It’s alright” she interrupted,  “I know and I don’t care. I mean I care you guys are happy. That Jace is happy. And he’s obviously happy with you. I mean... just look at him!”

Cade chuckled as he looked down to his sleeping friend and his goofy grin for a while.

“Thanks for having me.”

“What? Of course!” Sylvia said cheerfully.

“You should have seen him when he asked us about you coming. And when he jumped and ran around for hours when we said sure. Not that he was leaving us any choice anyway.”

Cade smiled widely imagining the scene.

"Own it, guys. Cherish these moments. You have the most beautiful thing going on. Don't let the world rob you of it."


	18. Chapter 18

Cade had been staying with his father in Los Angeles for a week, and he had one more week to spend there. Needless to say, he missed Jace, and the two had practically been texting every hour of the day, with more intense chat sessions in the evenings.

It’s not that Cade and his dad were spending their time at home. So far, they had been to Universal Studios, Knott’s Berry Farm, Venice Beach and had gone biking on the strand, along the South Bay. His dad, Scott, rented an apartment there, just two blocks from the sea. In the evenings, they went to the best restaurants, they even went twice to Cade’s favorite nearby sushi place.

That saturday evening though, they didn’t feel like eating out, so Cade’s dad had the local Vietnamese place deliver dinner.

“Dinner’s served!” Scott called from the dining room, while Cade was lounging in the sofa, in the middle of a texting session with Jace.

“Coming!” Cade replied, still absorbed in his conversation.

After a minute, not seeing Cade coming, Scott appeared in the living room.

“Ha you kids and your damn texting.” Scott said. Cade smirked and scoffed while he got up to join his dad.

“Look who’s talking.”

“What?” Scott replied trying to sound innocent.

“Dad, you’ve been texting all afternoon!” Cade replied.

“I wasn’t *texting*” Scott replied as they sat down at the dinner table and unwrapped their meals.

“Okay, okay, you’ve been on Tinder. Same thing!”

“I’m meeting her tonight.” Scott announced with a touch of pride in his voice.

“Oh... ohhh, hence the dressing up.”

“Yeah.”

“Who’s the lucky one?” Cade asked teasingly.

Scott showed his phone to his son, displaying a selfie of a thirty-ish smiling brunette.

“She looks nice.”

“She does. Who’s *your* lucky one?” Scott asked in return, glancing down at Cade’s phone.

“Oh. Errr. I don’t have … No, it’s just some friend.” Cade didn’t expect the question.

"Son, you’ve been smiling at your screen all day. And I know that smile.”

“Someone from school.” Cade replied, hoping his dad wouldn’t have any follow-up questions.

“You have a picture you can show me?”

“Errr... I’d rather not.” Cade replied as he blushed, and looked at his food.

“Alright. Alright.” Scott knew when to stop teasing. He definitely wasn’t the kind to push his son.

“Oh I should get going.” Scott remembered as he saw the time on his phone and stood up in a hurry.

“We’re going to grab a drink in Santa Monica and watch the sunset. Don’t wait up!”

“Have fun, dad.” Cade said cheerfully as Scott was at the frontdoor.

“I will! Love you.” Scott replied as he left.

Cade had had a difficult time with his parents’ divorce when he was 8. He had hated his dad for a while and even refused to see him. But since he’s been a teenager, their relationship had got much better. Cade loved his dad and he’d always been looking forward to visiting him in the past few years.

After Scott had left, Cade sat in the couch and started unlocking his phone but he stopped himself after he glanced at the window and noticed the inviting orange glow outside, he decided he wasn’t going to stay indoor for once. As the sun was about to set on the Pacific Ocean, he grabbed his skateboard and headed out to the nearby pier.

The pier was quite busy. The place reminded Cade of San Diego, only with way more tourists. Cade managed to find a less busy spot where he could lay his board, and perform a few ollies and heelflips. When he had enough of the crowded pier he decided he would just head south on the strand and coast along the short wall separating the concrete path from the large sandy beach.

As he was just riding and gazing absent-mindedly at the sea and the silhouettes of the beach volley players against the fiery sky, he heard someone call behind him.

“Cade? Cade from Anchor Beach?” he heard, as the sound of another board caught up with him.

Cade stopped and turned over. He saw the familiar face of Connor Stevens, riding his own skateboard. Connor was wearing a bright tank top, round sunglasses and stylish shorts.

“Dude! No way! It’s really you. What are you doing here?” Connor looked surprised and apparently delighted to stumble upon Cade such a long way from home.

“Connor? Stevens? Man. What are YOU doing here?”

“I live here now.”

“No way! I’m on vacation, visiting my dad. Wait ... you just said you live here?”

“I had to move with my mom. She lives here. Long story. Anyway, doesn’t matter. How’ve you been?”

“Great! You know, doing the usual touristy stuff here in LA with my dad.”

The two boys chatted for quite a while. They sat on the sand, against the other side of the wall, facing the sea. Actually, that was the more they ever chatted. They talked like they’d known each other for years. Connor opened up a bit more about the reason for his move to LA. And Cade told Connor about his vacation in Lake Tahoe.

Cade was swiping through the pictures of his vacation while Connor held the phone.

“Aww man that place looks awesome. I need to go there sometime.”

Cade’s heart skipped a beat when the next picture was a selfie of Cade with Jace’s face burrowed in his neck.

Connor grinned warmly. “Cute.” he said.

Cade blushed.

“Thanks to you, man.”

The sun had disappeared behind the horizon when they parted ways, after exchanging phone numbers.

* * *

“You’re never gonna guess who I just bumped into.”

Cade was back at his dad's apartment, texting with Jace.

“Wut? I won't let any boy of mine alone anywhere near Connor Stevens. I'm driving there.”

“If only your mom would let you, and if my dad would let you crash here _(anguished face emoji)_ ”

“Man I miss you so bad. I could just drive there and sneak in through your window.” Jace wrote.

“ _(Smirking face emoji)_ ”

“But seriously would it be okay with your dad if I took the train there and we would spend the day together while he's at work? Then I would get back to SD in the evening. I'm pretty sure I could get my mom on board with some convincing.” Jace wrote.

“Ask your dad, pleeeeease _(picture of a doe-eyed cat)_ ”

* * *

Scott was to go back to work for the second week of Cade's visit. He could only get a week off from his job.

How would Cade ask his father about Jace coming while sounding casual about it, when all Cade could think about was hugging Jace again?

When he woke up that Sunday morning, Cade opened his texts.

“Sylvia said YES!” Jace wrote.

“ _(heart-eyes emoji)_ ”

“U asked your dad yet?” Jace continued.

“Not yet :/”

At breakfast, Cade observed as Scott was apparently in a good mood pouring himself a cup of coffee in the kitchen while humming a happy tune.

“How’d your date go?” Cade asked casually as he grabbed the cereal box from the cupboard.

“It went okay, I guess.”

“Alright, she's very nice. We're seeing each other again next week!” Scott continued, trying to contain a big grin.

“Way to go, dad!”

Cade's phone buzzed. When he unlocked it, he almost choked on his cereal. It was a selfie of Jace, shirtless, with his dog licking his mouth. The caption read “This could be us but you playin”.

Cade had to let go of the piece of cereal he was chewing on before he giggled. Scott noticed.

“You alright, son?”

“Yeah, sorry. Just a dumb text from a friend.”

“Hey, so…I was wondering, I have this friend kinda passing by in LA next week.” Cade continued.

“Yeah?”

“I was wondering if you would mind if we hang out around here while you're at work?”

“Girlfriend, boyfriend?” Scott said, in the most casual tone.

Cade’s throat suddenly tightened hearing his dad saying that word.

“He or she can even stay the night. No problem.” Scott continued, noticing his son’s embarrassed face. “Separate rooms of course.”

Cade stood up, his eyes were wet. He walked to his dad and hugged him. Scott had to get his coffee mug out of the way.

“Thanks dad.” Cade said, his voice breaking.

“Of course. I can't let my son get bored to tears in here all week. Can I?”

That made Cade smile.

“What's his name?” Scott continued.

“Jace. His name is Jace.” Cade replied over his dad’s shoulder.

 Scott tightened the hug, rubbing his son’s back.

 “Tell Jace he can stay as long as he wants.”


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New title, same fic :) "Cade" had always been a working title, and a temporary name for the character. I can't possibly change the character's name at this point of the story. But the new title is here to stay. I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

“I think I love your dad already _(delighted smiley face emoji)_ ” Jace wrote, after Cade told him about Scott’s open invitation. “How'd he guess tho?”

“I have NO idea” Cade replied.

Cade felt restless that Sunday morning, knowing he would be reunited with Jace the next day. And it showed. He had put on a light colored t-shirt, something very unusual for Cade, his wardrobe consisting almost exclusively of black and dark stuff. And he was tidying up his room, his hair still wet from the shower, grinning and happily singing along his favorite song blasting through his earphones.

* * *

The day went by great, though too slow if you asked Cade. He’d been randomly hugging his dad without warning throughout the day, and they had just come back home after a walk and a cup of ice cream on the sea front walk.

When Cade got back in his room that evening, his phone buzzed with a video call. He was beaming when Jace’s face appeared on the screen.

“Sooo? you got those train tickets yet??” Cade asked.

“Nope. Not taking the train.” Jace replied sternly.

Cade looked confused.

“Because Alex is giving me a ride!” Jace shouted enthusiastically.

“B-but how?? How'd you convinced him?”

“I didn’t have to. He’s making the trip for the Echo Park festival in downtown LA. Remember his friend’s band back in Tahoe?”

“Uh-ugh?”

“They’re playing there. Anyway. Now you don’t even have to come pick me up!”

Cade would have gladly made the 1.5-hour trip to the train station and back, but having Jace delivered to his door was awesome news as it meant they would enjoy more of their time together.

* * *

Later that night after dinner, Scott was lounging in the couch watching TV while texting on his phone from time to time when Cade joined him.

“Someone's been happy today.” Scott joked as Cade took place next to him. “Any connection to Jace coming tomorrow?”

“Dad!” Cade protested while grinning.

“Hey. You said you'd like to see pictures, remember?” Cade continued.

“I'd love to.” Scott replied in his best caring dad tone, putting away his own phone as Cade scooched closer on the couch to show him the pictures of the vacation in Tahoe.

“He seems like a nice fellow.” Scott commented sincerely as to they went through the carefully vetted album Cade had prepared, leaving out the most intimate of the pics.

The last picture was a selfie of Cade, with Jace tenderly laying his head on the dark-haired boy's shoulder at sunset, with a gorgeous view of the lake and the mountains in the background.

Cade was a bit nervous about including that picture. But he felt so lucky for having Jace in his life he had to show it to the world.

When the photo came up, Cade noticed Scott’s eyes watered, and he heard him sniffle softly.

“You alright, dad?”

“Yeah … yeah.” Scott replied, visibly emotional, rubbing a tear from his eye and smiling.

“Come here, son” he continued, his voice slightly breaking, before he grabbed Cade’s opposite shoulder for a hug, and kissed his hair.

“I'm so proud of you, buddy”

* * *

That Monday morning, Cade couldn't sit still. Scott had left for work and Jace had texted, saying Alex just picked him up. Jace was on the way!

Cade was walking quickly around the apartment, making sure things were perfect. Not that Jace would care if the place was a mess, as long as Cade was there. But Cade had to keep himself busy to channel his excitement anyway. He had changed the bedsheets. He had brushed his teeth, twice. He had arranged his hair, put on his nicest t-shirt and his favorite snapback hat.

Around 11AM, Cade’s phone finally buzzed. He’d never unlocked his phone so fast in his life.

“Just got out of the freeway _(eyes closed with tongue sticking out emoji)_ 20 minutes left.”

Even though Cade still had some time to spare, he was too excited to stay put, so after quickly checking himself out in the mirror, he ran down the residence stairs to wait in the street.

Cade was gasping at every dark SUV he could spot taking a turn into the street. Until one finally pulled over and the driver window opened. Cade was beaming when he saw Alex at the wheel and Jace's smile on the passenger seat.

“One Love Shuttle delivery for Mr ...uh.. Cade?” Alex joked as Jace hit his shoulder for that lame joke.

“Hey Alex, man, how've been?” Cade said as he approached and he gave the college bro a shake.

Jace couldn't wait. He exited from the passenger side, practically running to meet Cade on the curb.

You couldn’t wipe the smile off the two boys' faces if you tried. Though they did attempt to keep their cool in front of Alex as they hugged.

“Thanks cousin. I owe you one.” Jace said to Alex, before he grabbed his backpack from the backseat and closed the door.

“No big deal. See you on Wednesday, bro.” Alex said before he turned the ignition and started rolling.

“Play safe, dudes!” he joked, before he gave the boys a hang-loose sign with his arm through the window as he was driving away.

* * *

After Cade gave Jace the -- rather short -- tour of his dad’s apartment, they found themselves gazing into each other's eyes, standing by the couch in the living room.

Why Cade felt shy with Jace, while it was just the two of them alone in that room was a mystery. He'd been craving Jace's presence for a week, but he didn't want to rush things and spoil the moment by jumping at Jace's neck, even it that was all he could think about.

“Hey, you hungry?” Cade said, breaking the awkward silence.

“Man, I'm starving!” Jace replied. “We could go grab something? My treat!”

“No need, I'm cooking”

"You cook??” Jace was genuinely surprised.

“Well i know only one dish. Spicy meatballs. My specialty.”

"Alright!” Jace replied excitedly.

* * *

That afternoon of August, the sun was scorching, and there was no wind coming from the sea. They heat outside was unbearable.

The boys opted to spend the afternoon inside playing video games, in the fresh air of the AC.

They were constantly teasing each other, breaking into tickling fights from time to time on the couch. Until during one of them Jace couldn't wait any longer and pressed his lips against Cade's.

Cade felt that fuzzy, warm rush taking over his whole body in an instant. After a few seconds, he felt already light-headed, and short-breathed.

Gosh had he missed that feeling.

Cade felt Jace wanted to take things slow, though. And Cade thought it was a good thing. They both didn't want to spoil the moment. Jace was giving Cade the most soft and tender kisses. And when he was going for Cade's neck, Cade couldn't help but giggle every time.

In Jace's arms, Cade lost track of time, and the make-out session was suddenly interrupted when they heard keys turning in the front door lock.

They looked at each other with panic in their eyes. Jace rushed to grab the couch cushion that had fallen on the floor while Cade swiftly put back his snapback hat, sat back at his position on the couch and grabbed the game controller.

When Scott pushed the door, they tried their best to act natural, except Cade was holding the game controller upside down and Jace was missing a sock.

“Hey-heeyy dad” Cade stuttered, trying to sound casual but failing.

“Hey boys” Scott said as he dropped the keys in the bowl.

“Oh hey Mr. Carter” Jace said in the most polite tone he could manage while still catching his breath, before he gulped and stood up to greet Scott.

When Cade turned over to watch the scene from the couch, his eyes widened in horror as he noticed a giant tuft of hair standing straight up from the back of Jace's head.

“You must be Jace”

“Nice to meet you, sir.”

“Ah don’t call me sir. Just Scott.” he replied in a friendly tone. “Nice to finally meet THE Jace.” he said as he shook the tall blond’s hand.

“Oh, I’ll be right back. I forgot something in the car.” he continued before he rushed back outside.

The boys fumbled to finish rearranging themselves as soon as Scott was out the door.

“Your hair!” Cade motioned to Jace before he threw Jace’s lost sock at him, and he adjusted his own shirt.

“Windy day, huh?” Scott said as he reappeared through the front door, startling Jace as he was still rearranging his blond mane.

Jace was red in embarrassment.

“Alright, who’s down for some ice cream?!” Scott said, showing the two tubs he was holding, and breaking the tension.

Jace’s face instantly lit up and Cade jumped out the couch and run to join them in the kitchen.


	20. Chapter 20

The atmosphere in the living room was lively, fun and friendly that evening. The three guys had pizza while they competed on a kart racing video game. Jace and Scott had basically become best pals already, and that made Cade happy.

As Jace excused himself from the party to go take a shower, he just casually laid a quick smooch on Cade's cheek in passing.

Cade gasped. Jace looked like he didn't even think twice about that gesture, and that kiss felt like the most natural thing in the world. Jace must have felt so comfortable around Scott, he didn't even mind him anymore, Cade figured.

He watched as Jace walked to the bathroom and closed the door behind him, while Scott had paused the game. The living room suddenly fell silent.

Cade’s attention was caught by the noise of sniffling, when he turned around Scott’s was visibly on the edge of tears. Cade instantly felt something wasn't right with his dad and he quickly went sitting next to him on the couch.

“What's wrong? What's going on?” Cade had never seen his dad in such an emotional state. He was worried for Scott and he didn't know what to do.

Scott couldn't talk just yet. His face was red, his eyes crying, breathing sharply.

“Is it about your date? What happened?”

Scott managed to get a hold of himself after he breathed deeply a few times.

“I'm alright. I'm alright. It's just… it's just seeing you guys”

“Wh-what do you mean?” Cade was puzzled. He knew his dad was proud of him. But he also knew Scott wasn't emotional for just that reason. Cade felt there was something else.

“I guess there's a story I should tell you” Scott continued. He sighed and paused briefly.

“When I was your age, maybe a little younger, I had this friend. Ryan. He had just arrived in town and in the span of a few weeks we became inseparable. Best buddies. Always hanging out together in school and on the weekends. His parents were modest and very religious. When summer came, we brought him with us on the family vacation in Colorado, as his parents couldn't afford traveling or even sending him to summer camp. We had the time of our lives there. The place was huge. Big open spaces. We were free to roam about, camp whenever and wherever we wanted. And our relationship developed to a point when one night, we were just looking at the stars, and we kissed, and it felt like the most natural thing in the world. We were too young to care about the world of adults, religion, taboos. It just felt right.” Scott said.

Cade couldn't help but wipe a tear and smile. His dad’s story echoed with his own time with Jace.

“Anyways. Fast forward two years. We'd been secret lovers. The special part of our relationship we lived in secret. Until Ryan had enough of hiding and came out to his parents as gay. They reacted in the worst way possible, sent him to conversion therapy and moved out of town the following week. For months, I was inconsolable. I tried everything to contact him, but his parents did everything they could to keep me away. He was the person I cared about the most in the world and he was gone. We wrote a few times during the following two years and he sounded miserable, until he turned 18 and moved away from his parents.”

Cade was heartbroken by Scott's story, unable to even speak.

“To see you guys together brought back that memory. This special thing you have, I know how it feels. And I swear, I swear, if I hear anybody giving you shit about how you guys feel about each other or if they do you or Jace any harm, I swear they're gonna have Scott Carter as an enemy.” Scott continued. “You guys just be who you are.”

“Thanks, dad” Cade said as he hugged him.

“What happened to Ryan after that? Did you ever hear from him again?”

“The distance was too much and after a few letters we lost contact. Later in college, I met your mother. And one day, around the time you were born I got an email from him, out of the blue. He had found someone, and was in a happy relationship with a man. He wrote he'd never forget our friendship and that without it, he would have never had the courage to come out.”

Scott paused. Cade was stunned. That was a lot to take in.

“Anyway…. wow, okay” Scott was slowly getting back to his normal self, visibly relieved. “I’d stay here reminiscing all night but I gotta go.” Scott had apparently found his energy back. “Bitches don't wait.” he joked, before he stood up and walked to his room to get ready for his date.

Cade zoned out for a while when he found himself alone in the living room, thinking about Scott's story. He would never have imagined what his father had experienced, even less so that he would have shared that story with him.

Cade was brought back to reality when he heard the muffled sound of Jace singing loudly and in the most silly voice under the shower. Cade chuckled as he pictured Jace holding the showerhead as a microphone.

* * *

Scott had left for his date, informing the boys he would make sure to send a text before he gets home, this time.

The boys were lounging on the bed in their pajamas. They had already got ready for the night, even if they didn't intend to go to sleep just yet.

They were just sitting over the sheets, chatting calmly.

“Wow. I had no idea. Your dad is freaking awesome.” Jace commented after Cade told him Scott's story.

“Don't tell him I told you, tho. I don't want to embarrass him.”

“I won't” Jace promised.

They sat in silence for a while while playing with their phones.

“Hey, what's this?” Jace asked as he grabbed a grey apparatus that was laying on the nearby drawer. It looked like scuba goggles with a big headband. Jace put them over his face and looked at Cade.

“VR goggles? Virtual Reality? You never tried those?” Cade replied.

“Nope. How it works? How am I supposed to see anything? I mean it's just a black flap in front.” Jace said as proceeded to move the flap up and down, puzzled at the curious object.

Cade chuckled. “You have to put your phone in there first.” he replied “Here, let me show you”. Cade grabbed the goggles from Jace, launched an app on his phone and fitted it in.

“No waaayyy” Jace exclaimed in awe when he had the goggles on and was looking around.

“Alright, then you take this...” Cade said as he placed a small remote in Jace's hand “... and you just shoot the monsters”.

“Got it.”

Cade couldn't contain his laugh as he witnessed Jace on his knees, turning around clumsily on the bed, pointing the remote in random directions, ducking to avoid the enemies, and getting startled by the 3D monsters coming at him.

Cade was sitting right next to Jace, and he had to move out of the way at times to avoid getting hit.

“Watch out, man” Cade said as Jace almost hit his face with his elbow.

Cade observed, chuckling. Seeing Jace his in pajamas -- socks, sweat pants and a hoodie -- gesticulating around him, Cade had to repress the temptation to just grab and tickle the tall blond. Jace's cute goofiness was unbearable.

Cade managed to keep it together for a while. But when Jace practically climbed on him and had his torso pressed against the dark-haired boy’s face, that was too much. Cade’s kissing reflex kicked in, he burrowed his face into Jace’s hoodie, grabbed him by the sides, and pushed him back on the bed, before he started tickling him.

“No fair! I was about to get this one!!” Jace protested when Cade gave him a short break.

Jace pulled out the goggles from his face while Cade was laying on top of him.

Their eyes locked as they grinned at each other, before Cade suddenly resumed the tickle torture.

The laughs intensified when Cade spotted an area of exposed skin near Jace’s belly button and instinctively proceeded to kiss it repeatedly.

“A’ight, alright!” Jace managed to say between the laughs, interrupting Cade by grabbing his shoulders.

“What time do you think your dad will come back?” Jace continued in a low voice, a devilish smirk on his face.

Cade could tell Jace was up to no good.


	21. Chapter 21

Cade awoke to the sound of the front door closing. His eyes popped open when he realized. He had fallen asleep in the wrong bed. Shoot, he hadn't even prepared the bed he was supposed to sleep in.

Cade sat up in a jolt. He looked around. The morning sun was pouring through the window and onto the bed where Jace was sound asleep, by his side. Cade sighed softly.

He slowly got off the bed, taking care not to wake Jace up, and opened the door to the living room to investigate. No one. Scott had probably just left for work. Cade walked to the kitchen and found a note on the fridge.

“Eggs bacon and avocado on the top shelf. Don't forget to make your bed(s) :) Love you. -Dad”

Crap, Scott had noticed.

Cade facepalmed when he looked back towards the living room and noticed the sheets he was supposed to use, still carefully folded and laid on a corner of the couch.

Cade wasn't proud he failed his dad. Separate rooms, he had agreed. And even if Scott seemed to joke about it in his note, Cade hoped Scott didn't imagine anything happened the past night.

Cade walked back to the bedroom. The sight of Jace in a peaceful slumber somewhat calmed his nerves. The bed was a mess, though. The tall blond’s feet were sticking out from under the bedclothes, and his hoodie was on the floor.

Cade sat back on the bed and got lost in thoughts for a moment, he smiled to himself thinking about the past night before he heard the sheets moving.

“Hey” Jace said, in his low sleepy voice, with only half an eye open.

Cade’s face instantly lit up.

“Hey”

Jace rubbed his head around against Cade's shoulder, like a cuddly cat in need of a chin scratch, a sleepy smile on his face.

Cade laid a smooch on his forehead.

“Sorry about last night” Jace said.

“Sorry for what?”

Jace sat up on the bed.

“The text from your dad. I heard your phone buzz. But I didn’t want to wake you up.”

“Why?”

“I didn't want to sleep alone. And you’re way too cute when you sleep. Anyway. So when your dad arrived, I explained it was my fault. I offered to sleep on the couch but he said I didn't have to, not to worry about it, and that he trusted us.”

Cade looked back at Jace with a worried look.

“You sure he didn't look mad or anything?”

“Nope, not even for a second. He was cool. Oh, and he gave me this.” Jace reached out to grab something on the nightstand and held it between them.

A wrapped condom. Cade put his face in his hands.

“Oh no no no no no. I don't mean we should use it. And he didn't mean it like that either. He said... just in case, you know. Better safe than sorry. That's a nice gesture.”

“I knooow, but still. Gosh. That's so embarrassing! Ahhhhh!” Cade said, the sound of his voice muffled through his hands.

He sighed as he peered through his fingers and finally removed his hands. His face was flushed.

He yanked the small package from Jace's hand.

“'Regular’?! That's not even your size.” Cade commented. “And that's not mine either, for the opposite reason.” he continued with a smug look on his face, trying to contain his laughter.

“You better have a good explanation for what you just said, man.” Jace warned with a smirk, before he suddenly grabbed Cade into a tickle fight.

“You... have… no...idea...what..you're ...talking… about” Jace said between his tickle attacks.

When Cade was pinned down on the bed, they paused and looked into each other eyes as the laughing gradually subsided. Then Cade bought his way out with a quick stolen smooch on Jace’s cheek which prompted the blond to press his lips against Cade's while he released the hold and rolled to the dark-haired boy’s side.

Cade’s mind was lost into the kiss, he wished it never ended. That moment, he felt he could hold his breath forever and had infinite stamina. But when he felt Jace’s hand laying on his stomach, the warm pleasing tingling made him feel he was about to pass out, and he had to break the kiss to gasp for air.

“Do you want to?” Jace asked, murmuring shyly. “I mean... kissing...like last night... without shirts?”, he continued while he was fumbling with the lower rim of Cade’s t-shirt.

Cade nodded furiously.


	22. Chapter 22

"Aww man I've been looking forward to snowboarding again since I was 10!" Cade replied.

"Well my dude, I just checked the snow conditions and they're just perfect. You coming along?" Jace texted back.

Cade was delighted at the idea of spending the week between Christmas and New Year's Eve with Jace. He usually spent the holidays in San Diego with his mother, but she had heard of her son's boyfriend's invitation, she gladly made other plans.

Boyfriends. It was out in the world.

Not that it had gone easy at school when the word spread and they had no choice but to own it.

Fortunately, Connor had been a big help in keeping the few troublemakers in check. Just staring the bullies down when they dared make a comment usually sufficed, and the school quickly got used to the new couple. In fact, the two best buds hadn't changed their behavior much. A quick smooch on the cheek when they couldn't hold it here, a tender hug there. By Halloween, no one batted an eye anymore at the signs of affection the two would display in public. The rest of the time, they were just the best bros they always had been. Cade loved being able to act natural around people when he was with Jace.

Jace's mom, had always been supportive, and despite the "no closed door" policy she set at home, she let the boys have their pajamas parties when she went on her girls' nights out.

Coming out to his own mom was an interesting experience for Cade. "I know, and I love you."

Even if words didn't really matter to the boys, "gay", "bi", "boyfriends", they were liberating in a way. Even if those words came with loads of preconceived ideas in the minds of people, the guys figured they didn't have to make it their mission on Earth to fix prejudice. The gain from being able to be free largely out-weighted the drawbacks of giving narrow-minded people the wrong ideas. You can't control what people think, the two had concluded, before they decided to come out. And the "boyfriends" label hadn't changed the nature of their relationship one bit.

* * *

 

"Bring one of those" Jace texted, with a picture of an ugly Christmas sweater.

Cade was beyond excited after he put his phone away to recharge it for the night on the bedside table. He couldn't lie still. He spent the evening grinning at himself, occasionally giggling in anticipation of their vacation together.

It hadn't been feeling like winter in San Diego, it never had. Cade always dreamed of a white Christmas, and Jace was bringing him on his first one ever.

* * *

The ranch looked nothing like Cade remembered. The grassy fields had disappeared under two feet of fresh snow, and the horses were probably safe in the warmth of the stables. The landscape was a postcard winter wonderland as the timid sun shone its last rays on the snowy peaks surrounding Lake Tahoe.

  
When they parked in front of the main house, Jace's grampa, Bob, was just about to plug the Christmas lights he probably had just finished installing. Cade was in awe when the outline of the large wooden house illuminated with a bright warm light.

"Oh wow" he said as he stepped out of the SUV, in a breath that produced a thick cloud of condensation from the crisp cold air.

"Come on inside you sillies." Jace's grandma, Alice, hurried from the entrance door. The SoCal family rushed to grab their bags from the trunk, shivering, having clearly underestimated the cold when they picked their clothes.

"This isn't San Diego!" the adorable old lady wearing an apron reprimanded as Sylvia, Cade, Jace and his cousin Alex quickly made their way inside.

As soon as he stepped in, Cade could feel the warmth from the living room's fireplace radiating onto his face. Giant socks hung there, and the 10-foot Christmas tree was shining with so many lights. The walls were orned with grapes of holly and tinsel.

Cade was feeling like a child walking into Santa's house, when he felt his boyfriend hugging his shoulders from behind, as they both watched the rest of the family too busy looking around the wonderfully decorated living to notice them.

Jace's grandparents didn't know. And Jace promised he wouldn't embarrass Cade in any way, and that if he didn't feel like coming out to them, he wouldn't have to.

They would have to keep the hugs and smooches to themselves at least until Bob and Alice go to bed. 

* * *

 

"So senior year boys, huh? How's it coming along?" Bob asked at the dinner table.

"Not too bad so far." Jace replied.

"Any girlfriend yet?" Alice asked innoncently.

The dreaded question. Cade looked down focusing on his food, while Alex and Sylvia glanced at each other.

"Actually..." Jace hesitated.

Cade felt a rush of adrenaline and had to forcibly swallow his food so he wouldn't choke on it.

"Actually, no. I'm trying to focus on schoolwork this year." Jace continued.

"Oh good. That's good." Alice replied.

It wasn't a good time to bring that up. And Jace had apparently felt the same way.

"So Cade, how are you liking our Tahoe winter so far?" Alice asked.

"It's great, m'am. I mean I only went to Bear Mountain once when I was a kid, so it's only the second time in my life I see snow. It's awesome." Cade replied.

"Oh really? Well there's plenty of it this time of the year around here. So you won't be missing out."

They laughed.

"You guys ready for hitting the slopes tomorrow?" Alex said.

"Yeah man! Definitely!" Jace answered.

The rest of the dinner went without anymore embarrassing questions. And Cade loved the warm atmosphere of the family.

For dessert, they all sat on the U-shaped sofa around the coffee table facing the fireplace, sipping on their cups of hot chocolate with floating marshmallows.

As soon as Alice and Bob excused themselves for the night, Cade slumped on the sofa along Jace's side and laid his head on the blonde's torso, closing his eyes and smirking like a sleepy baby.

"Awwwwww look at these two!" Alex said, getting up from his seat to shuffle both boy's hair playfully with his hands.

"Stop that." Sylvia said, half amused.

"I can't, they're way too cute." Alex replied.

Jace scoffed and tenderly rearranged Cade's hair before kissing it.

"Alex, I trust you with my boys tomorrow. No black diamond slopes on the first day." Sylvia said.

"Mom, we won't even go on the blue square trails. We'll probably spend most of the day learning how to stand up strapped to a snowboard. Don't worry." Jace replied.

"Yeah aunt Sylvia, don't worry. Black diamond trails is only on the second day." Alex joked.

The three boys laughed.

"Well, don't stay up late. You don't want to startle Santa when he comes for his delivery." Sylvia said as she got up to retreat to her room.

"Good night, mom."

"Good night, Sylvia" Cade said.

The three boys stayed up a little while, hanging out on the sofa. Alex showed them a few snowboard videos on his phone and they chatted a bit about their plans for their Christmas day snowboard session, before Alex went to bed.

At last Jace and Cade had the room to themselves. The living room was silent except for the soothing crackling sounds of the fireplace. The boys lounged a little bit longer on the sofa, sitting entwined against each other. Cade tilted his head up toward Jace's, his eyes still closed, reaching for the blonde's lips. The last they had kissed was too long ago, too many hours earlier, back in San Diego. When their lips pressed against each other's, Cade felt like the world around them melted away, like gravity had vanished and he was floating on a fluffy cloud. That kiss was everything right with this universe and he wished it never ended.


End file.
